Heading into the first-quarter report, analysts appear to be upbeat. Thomson First Call reports that there have been two upward revisions to BWLD's earnings estimates, with no downward revisions issuing forth. However, brokerage firms aren't exactly bullish toward the stock, with Zacks reporting six lukewarm Holds out of 11 total ratings.

Elsewhere on Wall Street, option players remain skeptical of BWLD, despite its impressive technical performance. During the past 10 days, traders on the International Securities Exchange (ISE) and the Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) have bought to open an average of 1.58 puts for every call on BWLD. A better-than-expected earnings report could send these pessimistic speculators rushing for the exits.

However, the most compelling catalyst for BWLD is its hefty short-to-float ratio. Currently, short interest accounts for a whopping 31.4% of the equity's available float. At the stock's average daily trading volume, it would take short sellers more than 12 trading days to buy back all of these bearish bets.

If BWLD exceeds consensus earnings estimates with today's report, the shorts will likely rush to cover in order to limit losses. The resulting buying pressure could propel the stock sharply higher, extending its year-to-date rally.

Meanwhile, even if BWLD falls short of expectations, the hefty accumulation of short interest could prove to be a boon. If the stock slides on a worse-than-expected report, some short sellers may capitalize on the decline by buying back their shorted shares at a profit. If so, the resulting short-covering support could stem any potential post-earnings weakness in the restaurateur's stock.

Elizabeth Harrow is an analyst and financial writer in the research department at Schaeffer's Investment Research. She is featured in the video series Schaeffer's Daily Q&A on SchaeffersResearch.com.